Part 7 focuses on BTS member Kim Taehyung. He is one of three younger band members, known as the maknae group. He is a lead dancer, vocalist and visual; visual means member(s) who most closely match the Korean beauty ideal.

Kim Taehyung (V) Enneagram Four | The “Unique” Person

From what I read, almost everyone who has typed Tae Hyung thinks he is an Enneagram Four, and I would agree that Four is his most likely Enneagram type. However, I doubt that people who guessed his type actually know him and, of course, I don’t either. What I found particularly interesting about him is that his behavioral patterns are nearly identical onstage – while performing or during practice sessions for performances – as they are off-stage in more informal settings. This overlap gives more credibility to observations of him related to his Enneagram type. However, this blog should be taken as speculation about Taehyung’s type rather than a definitive answer about his type.

Enneagram Fours desire deep connections with their own inner worlds and with others and feel most energized and vibrant when they authentically express their feelings and experiences. Fours tend to be inspiring, creative, introspective, deep, emotionally expressive and also intense, self-conscious, and emotionally changeable or moody.

Their fundamental belief is that they are different from other people and always will be. But how are they different? Are they different because they are unique and special, which is how Fours like to think of themselves? Are they different because they are deficient in some way? As they explore why they feel so different, Fours become highly introspective and particularly sensitive to feelings of deficiency and rejection.

Quotes from Taehyung

In these quotes from Taehyung, you can read about the emphasis he places on feelings, relationships, the importance of being unique, and the pain that comes with emotional separation.

“I have a big heart full of love, so please take it.”
“You can’t just come into someone’s life, make them feel special and then leave.”
“Forget what hurt you but never forget what it taught you.”
“Unless you open up and share your feelings, no one can understand what you are going through.”
“I may not be poetic, but I’d love to write songs that convey my true feelings.”
“Be yourself. Create your own unique style.”

General Description of Taehyung

Descriptions of Tae Hyung from those who have met him in person or know him well, as well as other BTS members, are remarkably consistent. He is described as passionate, creative, intense and dramatic. In a sense, he is described as the least predictable BTS member in the way he responds, both in terms of what he says and how quickly he says it. He is also highly predictable in his strong, quick emotional responses and how truthful he is when he reacts. Namjoon (RM) says on tape that he thought Taehyung has a  “unique character”  that he found “puzzling” at first, but had come to realize that “your strangeness is your unique charm.” Along the same lines is a comment from another person: Taehyung is “eccentric with quirky traits that make him standout.”

To add more flavor to the above description, two video reels reflect the uniqueness and dramatic quality of Taehyung. BTS has many videos of them altogether when they are asked a single question to which each of them responds. Often the question is something simple such as what is your favorite color or what is your favorite food. In one reel, the question is about if you were to enter a room and music were playing to represent you, what would your music be? Other BTS members simply name the song or musical genre. When Tae Hyung responds, he dramatically sings what sounds like an Italian opera.

Another example is a video of Tae Hyung taking us on a house tour, which several of them did once they had moved into their own homes. Here’s what Taehyung says during the tour. He studied interior design for six months so he could actually design the house himself. He wanted it to be a reflection of him, an expression of himself, which is common with Fours and their living space. He drew out what he wanted, even for the art, of which there is an abundance. The house color scheme is dramatic: beautiful black furniture with white walls to showcase the very colorful, highly unusual art, with many large pieces, mostly in vivid colors. And then there are the quirky touches: a colorful mickey mouse sculpture with what looks like two Mickeys, plus a set of medium size, colorful Muppet stuffed animals set against the black couch. In other words, dramatic, tasteful, vibrant, original, and expressive of him, which is common for the homes of many Enneagram Fours.

Taehyung’s Speaking Style

Because I don’t understand Korean, I relied on Korean speakers from online forums for these descriptions: “constructs sentences in uncommon ways; creative use of words such as ‘hospital uncle’ instead of ‘my uncle who is a doctor;’ sometimes jumbles sentences; idiosyncratic speech; his use of language is unique and innovative; often uses incomplete sentences, often when he appears excited, anxious or emotional.” Two additional comments are worth noting. ”It’s almost like Tae’s mind is seeing everything in another dimension and he can’t describe it in adequate terms.” “He takes a while to convey what he means or instantaneously expresses a reaction.”

The speaking style of Enneagram Fours, as above, reveals a great deal about their inner process. Almost more than anything, Fours want to express themselves and also be understood by others. This helps them feel seen, accepted, connected and validated. For Fours, however, communicating and also being understood get complicated. Many Fours describe their own inner experience as akin to having multiple movie screens operating simultaneously. Some screens are in color, some in black and white and most come with audio. So when they want to express themselves and be understood, which movie screen do they share? The other issue is that, like movies, their inner screens are also moving forward in time. So if Fours do share something, their inner experience has likely shifted to a very different place from when they first started to express themselves. This also explains why their sentence structure and phrasing can become complicated. They start to share something, then realize it’s not quite what is occurring or what they want to say, and then they start again, all in an effort to be understood accurately.

Taehyung’s Non-Verbal Behavior

Taehyung is, in a sense, one of the most non-verbally expressive among the seven BTS members. In other words, whether on stage or off-stage, it is easy to tell through his body language if he is sad, joyful, angry, fearful, impatient, puzzled, frustrated, intrigued, and a multitude of additional variations of emotional expression. This can be readily observed primarily, but not only, through his strong facial expressions, primarily his mouth and his eyes. When he likes something, his eyes shine and his mouth takes on an almost harp-like shape. When Taehyung becomes angry, his eyes become intense and he pouts with his mouth. When he’s fearful, his eyes get very large or very small and his whole face, including his mouth, are reminiscent of Edvard Munch’s painting “The Scream.”

In addition, his shifts in facial expressions appear instantaneous and dramatic. Online commentators have said: “Is he hamming it up?” “Is he purposely adapting his expression to match the context [onstage or offstage.]” “How does Taehyung go from nonchalant to over-the-top so quickly?” To put it another way, when Taehyung looks happy, he looks almost ecstatic. When he appears afraid, he looks close to terrified. When he’s angry, he often looks like he’s fuming. And when sad, he cries quickly and deeply, often appearing to need consolation from others. As a note, Taehyung does, at times, appear to purposely “ham it up” during some performances or in other videos where he directly faces the camera. However, his strong facial expressions appear so frequently and, in most cases, so spontaneously, that they appear to be the way in which he naturally expresses himself.

From an Enneagram Four perspective, however, Taehyung’s non-verbal emotional response patterns make sense. Fours place a high value on their own self-expression and the authentic communication of emotions. Fours are also emotionally intense; they feel their feelings intensely and often identify with them, believing I am what I feel. If Taehyung is a Four, he would feel his emotions strongly and feel a need to express them directly. In addition, most feelings come in waves, shifting unpredictably at times. Rather than exaggerating his emotions, at least consciously, Taehyung is more likely reacting directly from his inner experience at that moment in time.

Challenges for Enneagram Fours

Enneagram Fours, like all of the Enneagram types, have their own challenges. Their overarching challenge is a paradoxical one. On one hand, Fours want to feel unique, different and special and to be acknowledged for these qualities. On the other hand, Fours want to feel deeply connected to others and become distressed when a connection they savor either doesn’t occur or gets disrupted. Their paradox is this: how can Fours experience and maintain the depth of relationships they so desire while they are keeping themselves separate from others based on their need to be different? They want to feel part of something yet keep themselves apart from it.

The other major challenge for Enneagram Fours relates to the way they continuously, both consciously and unconsciously, compare themselves to other people. Although all of us compare ourselves to others at times, Fours do this consistently, partly as a way to understand how they are different from others. After the comparisons, Fours conclude they are better than that person, not as good as that person, or both. When they feel better than the other person, they feel superior. When they feel not as good, this triggers their sense of being deficient or not good enough. From this sense of deficiency, Fours try to remedy the situation by competing, becoming more adept at something, finding fault with the other person, or just feeling bad about themselves.

Simple, Powerful Development for Enneagram Fours

Rumi poem

Reflect on the meaning of this poem by 13th-century poet Rumi:
“You are not a drop in the ocean.
You are the entire ocean in a single drop.”

Relax your comparing behavior

The first step is to observe the subtle and more obvious ways in which you compare yourself to others and do so without judging yourself. Just notice. The second step is to reflect on how these continuous comparisons do and don’t support your self-acceptance, growth and overall well-being. If you decide to work on comparing less, do this: When you notice you are comparing yourself to another person, pause before deciding if you are better or worse and, instead focus on what you think they have and allow yourself to appreciate that they have this. Truly experience appreciation for what they have instead of comparing yourself to them.

Explore your deeper feelings

You may not realize this but underneath the feelings you want to express are more than likely much deeper feelings that you have not explored. What are they? What can they illuminate about you that is important for your self-reflection and growth?

Watch Tae Hyung’s music video

You can watch and hear V’s (Taehyung’s) music video, “Love Me Again” (2023).

About Ginger

Ginger Lapid-Bogda PhD, author of nine Enneagram books, is a speaker, consultant, trainer, and coach. She provides certification programs and training tools for business professionals around the world who want to bring the Enneagram into organizations with high-impact business applications. TheEnneagramInBusiness.com | ginger@theenneagraminbusiness.com

The photo used for this blog is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license and was downloaded from the Wikimedia Commons site. Through Wikipedia Commons, an independent reviewer confirmed that this image was under the stated license on that date listed. BTS is very careful and diligent with their copyrighted materials, which we respect and follow. All photos for this blog will be obtained from Wikimedia Commons with an International Creative Commons copyright.